April 2009 Archives

After many months of negotiation, and many months of fine tuning the details, the undercover magazine industry investigation group known as GKI, or GK Investigation, is finally able to release numerous clips to the Society of Publication Design, SPD, for use on their blog. … MORE

Service. It's one of the backbones of any great magazine, helping the reader to know more, make better decisions, be empowered to improve themselves or their surroundings. Just because magazines have been providing service since the very beginning though doesn't mean that any of these Medal Finalists for Photography in the Service Feature category are ordinary shots, standard or expected solutions. Far from it: the photography here is sharp enough to draw you in, even if you weren't thinking you needed to know about the best in cameras, get it together to start running,
stop slacking on your enviro cred, get a grip on what's going on inside
your brain at 40, or understand some of the underlying issues in your
personal universe. Take a look at the finalists after the jump....

Rounding out the Medal Finalists from the Educational/Institutional entries are the Design Medal Finalists: not surprisingly, quite a few covering hot issues in the education world! Probably not something most of us see with a lot of frequency, but getting some time in the spotlight after the jump...

All magazines have a specific audience, a reader who comes to the publication expecting certain coverage, with a certain voice and look, something they come to identify as part of themselves; but for the magazines from the Educational/Institutional part of our great world, the reader has a very, very specific interest, and the magazine works to telescope information through the tightest of lenses: general interest is not a luxury to be had here. And yet. Each of these Medal Finalists for Photography in the Educational/Institutional group bring their alumni, or their socio-political group, or their unique professional members the finest of work, elevating not just their magazine, but their readers as well -- for who doesn't take pride in a job exceedingly well done on their behalf? Kudos for the work after the jump...

The Medal Finalists from the Design side of the Trade/Corporate entries are just as invigorating a display of creative energy as their Photography partners... ranging from indie-movies to T-Pain to golf legends -- all beautiful, thoughtful design, and as these titles aren't typically newsstand fare, probably new to you, too! Take a peek...

Everyone's got a challenging job, right? Not only are you trying to make information and content beautiful and engaging, even if the topic might seem, at first, a little less-than, but you're also pleasing editors, advertisers, publishers, focus groups... the list goes on and on. But even when the topics might seem less-than ideal (kids' clothing? golf clubs? band-aids?), today's Medal Finalists from the Photography section of the Trade/Corporate entries PROVE that brilliance happens every day, with every kind of budget, and every where. Magazines that some might write-off as inherently impossible to make "look good" look stunning here, and these Medal Finalists are raising the bar for everyone...

More fabulous entries are here, from the Design family side of the Magazine Section tree, this time a collection of pages from each magazine, with entries from Blender, Esquire, GQ and W. More good stuff to come, including our Photo and Design Medal Finalists from the Trade/Corporate and Educational/Institutional selects next, so check back on us for a dose of good old-fashioned inspiration!

The judges at SPD certainly liked what they saw from this short-lived book, as well as the ASME judges who awarded its "Briefs" section with a National Magazine Award in 2008. Check out some of the awards for Portfolio from last year here, and some of their Medal Finalists for this year here.

More beautiful pages here, this time from the Medal Finalists in the Section category, our first up so far for Design. Recurring columns, a chart that's been blown-out into a spread of information, a beautiful opener for a special section: these are the pages that make a magazine rich and lively and dense, packed with informational vitamins and minerals, good for the reader in both content, and as we see here, visuals. Take a gander...

At long last, we bring you more Photography awards! (We know you've been waiting for them...) This overall category features more vibrant photography and excellent design from sections of the book that AREN'T features--where a lot of the creative time and energy is spent, but not always spotlighted as much as it deserves. Here again, the judging focuses on the photography and how effectively it communicates the message, all the while looking amazing.

These five contenders feature abundantly tattooed rockers, some nature, some architecture, some more nature, some more architecture, and really gorgeous fashion. The titles? Another diverse showing from several corners of the globe.

But who'll get the Gold and Silver? Find out on May 8! (see here or find out more after the jump)

The award preview greatness continues today as we switch our focus from Illustration to Photography. Always inspiring, photo is the life-blood of our biz. Photography can provide the clearest, most effective service to our readers, often relays the idea with no words needed (but good luck trying to sell that to your editors) and, um, frankly, good photography makes our job as designers a LOT easier. Thank god for our photographers.

These five medal contenders once again hail from very diverse titles, but all use jaw-dropping images to make you stop in your tracks and look twice (or three... or four... or more). Keep in mind, folks, that these titles are competing for the Gold and Silver awards. See the finalists and all their full-color glory after the jump.

Since BRIDES magazine debuted 75 years ago, during the Great Depression (interesting time to launch a magazine, no?) a lot has changed in America and the world, the repeal of Prohibition, and a World War to name a few. But the one thing that has remained the same is embracing a ritual and tradition that's been around for a long, long time and is nearly as fundamental as love itself. The following covers takes you though a visual journey of BRIDES magazine and it's evolution through the last seven decades, Enjoy!

Hi all, sorry your roving bowling reporter has been MIA for a while, I
had, um... a layoff and a few American cities to wander, but I'm back and
so is NYAMBL tonight, for the FINAL WEEKS!

The last few post-game gatherings have taken place across the street at
that dive I think they call Stitch, where you can see
waitresses in leopard bikinis / holsters, and see (hopefully from afar) some
of the more 'colorful' characters you thought Disney cleaned out of Port Authority
long ago. Once I saw the punching bag showdown from the
kids at Comedy Central and Flavorpill that had me giggling into the wee
hours. If I get my SPD entries done Ill run down and take pics! (or you can upload them to the FB page)

Schedule and a few cool designed vintage hints after the jump. (I found this in my mother's bowling bag...I think it was cheaper back then to take your kids to the lanes instead of day care;) /// HJ

Plenty of love so far for illustration, and the Medal Finalists here representing the best of Illustration: Story show why: a huge variety in the work, covering the personal profile, the sociological investigations (no babies? ladies partaking? are these related??), art appreciation, you name it. What unifies them is in the commitment to elevating already strong stories with the addition of the best of the best in terms of visuals. Take a look...

Keeping our illo-crush alive, we're taking a peek at the Medal Finalists in the Photo-Illustration category. Now, you might be wondering, why aren't these in the photo group? And we'll admit, like Donny & Marie (now The Archivists date themselves), it's a little bit one and a little of the other. But we think the spirit of the work, in the purposeful manipulation, is a little more illo. And we're sticking to it.

Pure artistry, though, in the pursuit of instructing, informing, and making ideas that much more interesting, no matter what: that's what we've got here...

We've kind of got an illustration-love theme started this week, so we figured it was the perfect time to keep it going by bringing you some of the Medal Finalists in the Illustration categories, starting with Information Graphics.

Again, a group of magazines you don't necessarily read all during the same trip to the beach, let's say, but great work from each of them, each in completely different ways... … MORE

In anticipation of the Gala coming up on Friday, May 8th, we're going to take the opportunity to devote a few posts over the next few weeks to the work of all the Medal Finalists who are in the running for Gold and Silver Medals that night, and to give everyone a chance to see what the judges all saw back in January: some truly great work from 2008.

First up, the Redesign category: truly eclectic. A music magazine, a food magazine, a travel magazine, a women's magazine, and an outdoors magazine that's over 100 years old. What do they all have in common though? Great design from each of these teams... … MORE

"Spot" illustrations may be small in size, but they play an enormous
role in the world of publication design. Measuring no more than 5 x 6
inches, a spot much catch readers' eyes, draw them into a story, and
convey complex ideas--often while competing with other visual elements
on the page. Every art director knows that sometimes, the most genius work you can do in a day is assigning just the right illustrator for just the right, possibly-impossible-to-describe assignment and getting back the perfect solution.

Here at WIRED, we're fairly wetting ourselves with excitement about our May issue, guest-edited by the inimitable J.J. Abrams. The entire issue is devoted to mystery, magic, and puzzles and is a cover-to-cover single issue redesign, the first in the magazine's history.

It's more than reassuring to pass by a newsstand and see magazines celebrating major-milestone birthdays these days... one of those, Glamour, hit recently with an issue devoted to celebrating its 70th! Design Director Geraldine Hessler and Photo Director Suzanne Donaldson and their team dedicated months to making this more than just another "special issue" and we're happy to share one of their big anniversary features here:

In honor of the magazine's seventieth anniversary, we asked 10 of America's top female artists to define the concept we're named for: glamour. They answered using charcoal, paint, cameras, neon lights, resin, dollhouse furniture and pink sugar. Take a look!

In between all the crazy preparation for Gala 44 (and trust me when I say you WON'T want to miss this one,) as a recurring item (and due to popular demand,) here is one of my latest design process vids of an opening spread featuring Drew Barrymore photographed by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott from the April 2009 issue of W magazine. Looking back, I had an idea of where the design would end up, but wanted to explore a few options first.Video after the jump.

A preview of some new work from King that just shipped to the printer, and a farewell:

As you may or may not have heard, after 8 years of publication and 51 issues, King magazine folded last week due to the economic climate. Sadly our June issue will be the last issue to hit newsstands. Between issues 50 and 51 our team worked on a complete re-design of the book to function better with a reduced budget and staff, while also freshening up the appearance of the magazine. Looking over this final issue has been incredibly bittersweet, it will be remembered as both one of the best issues in the King collection, as well as our final chapter.

If, like me, you've come to work only to discover you're the only even in today on the floor, you might be interested in a little creative break this afternoon--if yes, why not check out the Layer Tennis match that starts at 3pm (EST) between illustrators Jillian Tamaki (our friend from our recent DWI night) and Jennifer Daniel (she of the longest URL ever, possibly).Per the rules of Layer Tennis,

Two competitors will swap a file back and forth in real-time, adding to
and embellishing the work. Each artist gets fifteen minutes to complete
a "volley" and then we post it to the site live. A third participant, a
writer, provides play-by-play commentary on the action, as it happens.
A match lasts for ten volleys and when it's complete, the Season Ticket holders help declare the winner.

No matter what, always something fun to watch from start to finish, and you might just find today's a day you've got a little extra time, no?

I recently worked on a photo essay about Las Vegas by Albert Watson for LA...The Los Angeles Times Sunday Magazine and wanted to share it with everyone. The Creative Director is Rip Georges whom I have worked with over the years, and it was a great project to work on. The cover is a dream as it is all about the picture with just a small but beautiful type treatment and the inside spreads are fun as well.

We've got more Medal Finalists than ever which means more Gold and Silver Medals to award than ever. Thanks to our co-chairs Judith Puckett-Rinella and Nathalie Kirsheh, movies are being made, outfits planned, and the party part prioritized, but it won't be perfect unless you're there... invite & RSVP info after the jump.

Looking online we've noticed that someone (ahem, cough) seems to be running quite a second-income in SPD Annuals--what?!? Too much. Way too much. While we firmly believe you need at least one of each of our books on your shelves (inspiration! aspiration! perspiration!), and that a second copy of each isn't the worst idea either (you know how people *borrow* things), there's a reasonable price for everything.

In fact, these days, there's a deal to be had everywhere, right? So here's one for you: for a short time, three of our more recent Annuals available for more than $30 off the cover price, and free shipping for everyone. Click on for the big deals...… MORE

There's a war brewing in the SPD community, and it isn't pretty. (Well, actually, it is kinda pretty. Because that's how we roll.) It's between the Picas and the Points, and neither side looks like it's going to concede any time soon. Let's settle the battle once and for all--WITH A POLL. (continue ...)

We are terribly excited to be moving on into the 21st Century at SPD--and you will be too, because it means you can now purchase tickets ONLINE for our upcoming SPD@FIT event with Gary Koepke on Thursday, April 16th! That's right, your inspiration is just a few clicks away, any time of the day or night.